


Struck

by Silvfyre



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Male My Unit | Byleth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-14 09:02:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29416074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvfyre/pseuds/Silvfyre
Summary: The voices get too much for Dimitri after Rodrigue's death. He lashes out and Byleth pays the consequence.
Kudos: 9





	Struck

**Author's Note:**

> My first FE3H fanfic so excuse me if I portray these characters wrong. I only started playing the game last year and I regret not playing it the moment it was released.
> 
> Tis a short drabble. Testing the waters. Ambiguous ending cause why not.
> 
> This fic is based on the following tumblr art: https://cosumosu.tumblr.com/post/187833682701/fe3h-has-been-plaguing-my-ability-to-sleep-since

The voices wouldn’t stop.

He’d grown used to them over the last five years, but sometimes they just got too much. They would just get to that point where it was all he could hear. Where it felt like the ghosts of his past were reaching out with their ghostly hands to grab him. Trying to drag him down into the depths of hell.

That was what was happening now.

It had been gradual of course. First it had been a whispering of voices, and then he was seeing the ghosts that had haunted him for as long as he could remember. Glenn, his father, and he even swore that he could see Rodrigue amongst them now. Their whispers for vengeance were starting to drive him over the edge, and he knew that his friends were starting to grow concerned for his well-being. Except for Felix of course. But he was trying to ignore them, he really was. But the more they whispered, the more it was getting to him.

Now he couldn’t ignore them any longer.

“Nngh.” He clutched his face with an armored hand as he collapsed against a wall within the chapel.  _ You need to avenge us Dimitri… it’s the only way…  _ A ghostly voice whispered, its ghostly hands grabbing onto his fur coat. Squeezing his eye shut, he shook his head and tried to free himself from the phantom grip.. He  _ knew _ that vengeance wasn’t the only way. Rodrigue, the Professor, and Gilbert had all told him so, told him several times. And they weren’t haunted by ghosts so surely they must’ve been right? But the ghosts gripping his arms and his coat were getting louder, determined to make him listen to them again.

“--mitri?” A soft voice cut through the voices momentarily. “Dimitri, what’s wrong?”

Dimitri didn’t answer, or more like, he couldn’t. His breathing was ragged, his chest heaving with the sudden effort required to take in air. He hunched in on himself even more, hoping whoever had approached him would just leave.

Suddenly a hand reached out and touched his shoulder.

Dimitri panicked and lashed out.

A harsh cracking sound, and a cry of pain echoed throughout the chapel.

The voices stopped and the ghosts vanished.

Dimitri opened his eye, and was immediately filled with horror and guilt.  _ No, no, no, no, no! What have I done?  _ Byleth was on the floor just behind him, unmoving with blood pooling around his head. Of course it had been Byleth to be the one who approached him. His teacher was kind, too kind, towards him. Dimitri had always warned the man for as long as the two had known each other to be careful around him. And now Byleth was hurt because of him.

“Pro-Professor…?” Dimitri took a step forward, a hand reaching out. To do what, he didn’t know, but he was suddenly scared that he had killed the one person who’d always believed in him, despite what he had done.

Before he could take another step, a blur pushed past him straight to Byleth’s fallen body, kneeling beside it. Amber eyes snapped towards him, the fury within impossible to miss or mistake. “What have you done?” Felix’s voice was quiet, which was how Dimitri knew his oldest friend was furious with him.

“It-It was… it was--” Dimitri stuttered, unable to get the words out to explain that it had been an accident. Not that he was sure Felix would’ve believed him anyway. Felix was always the first to judge him whenever it looked like he was reverting to his old ways. He took a step forward, trying desperately to find the words to convey what had happened.

“ _ Don’t move! _ ” Felix’s cold voice stopped Dimitri dead in his tracks. The Prince of Faerghus just stared at his childhood friend as he pointed his sword at his throat. “Don’t you  _ dare _ move you rotten boar!”

“Fe-Felix… it was--it was an accident!” Dimitri tried to explain himself. The guilt he was feeling swallowed him whole. His gaze was fixated on Byleth, who hadn’t moved in the slightest at all since he had hit him. All because he couldn’t control his strength. All because he had let his ghosts get the better of him.

“Yeah right. Like I’m supposed to believe that. You might have had everyone fooled, but not me! I knew it was too good to be true!” Felix didn’t take his eyes off of him as he carefully maneuvered Byleth so the professor’s head was resting in the crook of his arm. Not once did Felix’s sword waver.

“It’s not--it’s not like that. Felix  _ please _ .” Dimitri stepped forward, for what reason he did not know, with his hands in a placating manner. He just wanted Felix to understand that he hadn’t meant to hurt Byleth. That it had been an accident. “The voices just wouldn’t  _ stop _ \-- and I could  _ feel _ the ghosts--”

“Enough!” Felix snarled at him, although with a little less bite than previously. Before the furious swordsman could say anything more, someone else spoke.

“What’s going on?” Sylvain looked slightly panicked as his gaze flicked from Felix to Dimitri. “I could hear shouting from the  _ bridge _ and--is that the Professor?”

Dimitri stepped back as Sylvain rushed to help Felix with Byleth’s limp body. He didn’t dare to speak up and just quietly watched. Sylvain’s arrival had prompted Felix to drop his sword so there was no longer a weapon at Dimitri’s throat. Sylvain turned to him.

“What happened here?” Before Dimitri could answer though, Sylvain continued speaking. “No, it doesn’t matter right now. We need to get the Professor to the infirmary.  _ Now _ .”

* * *

It was the middle of the night by the time Dimitri could get into the infirmary to see Byleth. He’d followed Felix and Sylvain as they carried their former professor to the infirmary, but the moment he’d tried to follow them inside, Felix had spun around and swung his sword at him. No words were spoken, but the glare Dimitri received spoke thousands. He wasn’t allowed to enter. Instead he took up vigil outside the infirmary, leaning against the wall, and when enough time had passed, he slid down it into a crouching position. He watched as several of the Blue Lions heard the news and trickled in to visit Byleth, many of them giving him a pitiful look as they entered the infirmary. Mercedes was kind enough to come and update him on Byleth’s condition, but otherwise, Dimitri was left alone to his thoughts.

Only once Felix had left the infirmary, the swordsman completely ignoring him as he did so, did Dimitri stand and enter. Being mindful not to disturb the other occupants, Dimitri made his way to the chair that had taken residence beside Byleth’s bed. Byleth himself looked peaceful in the bed, the blood from his injuries having been cleaned and bandaged. One side of his face, where Dimitri had struck him, had exploded into a set of impressive bruises. Guilt ran through him once again.

“I am sorry Professor…” Dimitri bowed his head, reaching out with one hand gently to touch Byleth’s hand. “It was not my intention to harm you…”

Silence followed Dimitri’s words. He felt like he had to say more, that he had to explain what had happened. But what would be the point? It wasn’t like Byleth could hear him in his state of unconsciousness anyway. Despite that, Dimitri would sit beside Byleth’s bedside until his professor woke. It was the least he could do after what he’d done.


End file.
